Chapter 222 [Bonus chapter]220: Cereberus?

Chapter 222 [Bonus chapter]220: Cereberus?

The beast was only a level 20 creature, and the experience points Val gained from killing it were negligible.

Thus, he disregarded the kill notification that popped up when he killed it and moved ahead, continuing his journey. He was headed deeper into the mountain range.

The shortcut to Shadow Valley was concealed behind a majestic waterfall.

While there were many waterfalls in the mountain range, this one stood out for several reasons.

First, it was located close to the outskirts of the mountain range, making it more accessible than most, and it was the largest in the surrounding terrains.

Second, its unique features, such as the swirling mist that seemed to dance around it like ethereal snakes, and the way the water cascaded down in a serpentine pattern, set it apart from the rest.

Because of these distinct characteristics, it was known as the Serpent's Veil.

"Found it."

Val used his Heavenly Eye to detect where it was and began moving towards it.

WOOF! WOOF! WOOF!

A series of thunderous barkings reverberated through the air, startling Val.

WOOF! WOOF! WOOF!

A series of thunderous barkings reverberated through the air, startling Val.

If his ears were not failing him, the roars seemed to have emerged from behind him.

He spun around and was met with the sight of a colossal, three-headed dog barreling towards him.

Its three pairs of eyes glowed with an unholy fire, and its massive, snarling jaws dripped with venom. Each of its three heads resembled that of a ferocious Rottweiler, but on a grander, more terrifying scale. Shaggy, obsidian-black fur covered its muscled body, which was as large as a small hill.

'It's freaking huge!'

Towering at that size, it effortlessly mowed down towering trees with the force of its sprint, making its approach all the more intimidating.

Val didn't even need to cast 'detect' to know that this beast was at least a level 60 monster.

Realizing he was completely outmatched, his instincts screamed at him to flee. And so he did, sprinting as fast as his legs could carry him.

However, he was not out of danger as the beast immediately gave chase.

It was faster than Val, despite its ridiculously massive.

Thus, the distance between them started to close rapidly.

"Bloodline Skill: Blood Rush."

With the activation of the Blood Rush skill, Val's agility jumped to more than 60 points. The gap between him and the beast stopped closing.

"Bloodline Skill: Titan's reinforcement."

Val's agility increased once again, and he began to run at an even faster speed, causing the gap to widen.

If this continues, he will leave the beast in his dust soon.

Unfortunately, fate had no intention of siding with him this time.

Seeing its prey getting further away, the three-headed dog unleashed a frigid blast of white air from its gaping maws.

Anything it touched instantly froze.

Thanks to his Heavenly Eye, Val had a 360-degree field of vision with no blind spots. Even though his back was turned to the beast, he saw its incoming attack clearly.

If he doesn't dodge this, he will also turn into an ice statue. He tried to jump into the shrine of evil, but for some reason, his entry was declined.

'Fucking hell,' he cursed under his breath.

But quickly, he calmed down.

Now was not the time to get angry.

'I have to find some other to save myself.'

The Mystical Shovel's special effect was no longer in cooldown. Although he could use it to escape to the Other Side, it would require time. The creation of the doorway was not instantaneous. It was precisely because of this delay that the Ravengar from which he looted the Mythical Shivel failed to get away and was killed. During his fight with the Queen Bee, he had to escape her eyes before he could put the Mythical Shivel to good use.

Anyway, the delay made it impossible to use it in the current situation.

He had to come up with another way.

With his Heavenly Eye active, Val was able to see that just ahead of the rocky outcropping in the distance, there was a shallow ditch.

"I'll be able to avoid the frigid blast if I can just jump into that ditch," he thought.

However, with his current speed, the frigid blast would reach him before he could make it to the ditch. How could he, with his keen sense of calculation, not foresee this?

But there was still a way around it.

'With my current speed, it's impossible. But what if I dump all the points I have saved until now into agility?'

In a desperate move, he dumped all the points he had saved up till now into his agility stat.

His permanent agility increased to 48 points.

With his stat-boosting skills activated, his agility should have risen to around 101, but for some reason, it capped at 100.

Regardless, his speed increased dramatically.

He moved so fast that he left behind a series of afterimages, appearing as a mere blur in the eyes of the three-headed dog.

Before the beast even realized what had happened, Val had already reached the rocky outcropping.

He leaped onto it and looked back tauntingly. After showing the beast a disdainful look, in a split-second decision, he vaulted off the rocky outcropping and landed in the shallow ditch below, narrowly avoiding the creature's terrifying cold breath.

The chilling breath from the creature collided with the rocks and trees where Val had been just moments ago, instantly freezing them in a crystalline layer of ice.

"Move. Now. The beast's nose is sensitive. It will sniff you out in no time," warned Voidslayer.

"Like I didn't know a dog would be sensitive to smell," Val said sarcastically.

"Master, there's no time for sarcasm. I can sense the beast tracking us down by your scent," Voidslayer urged.

At that moment, the three-headed dog sniffed the air a few times, catching on to Val's scent. It began moving towards the rocky outcropping where Val had last been.

Val could see all that thanks to his Heavenly Eye.

"Levare," Val muttered.

Hopefully, this works.

And unlike last time, it actually did.

Instantly, his surroundings shifted.

He was no longer in the mountain range. He was in a safe place!

He was in the Shrine of Evil.

Meanwhile, the three-headed dog followed Val's scent to the ditch just beyond the rocky outcropping, only to find it empty.

Though the ditch was heavy with Val's scent, he himself was nowhere to be seen.

The beast paused, looking visibly confused and taken aback.

Its nostrils flared wide as it took several deep sniffs, trying to pick up any lingering scent of Val. It even lowered its head to inspect the ground for any sign of footsteps or disturbances that could give away his direction.

However, the scent trail and footsteps mysteriously ended right at the ditch. It was as if Val had conjured some form of magic to erase his presence, rendering his scent and tracks undetectable, or he had somehow managed to disappear entirely from that very spot.

Unable to make sense of this perplexing situation, the three-headed dog growled in frustration, its eyes narrowing as it pondered the sudden disappearance of its would-be prey.

But it was a dog and although dogs are smart at times, they are more often than not dumb.

The more it thought, the more it felt bewildered.

Eventually, it gave up and walked away.

Now even if Val stepped out of the shrine, he wouldn't have to confront it!